What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

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buildomaha
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What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by buildomaha »

Just wondering what opinions are about our great city and its tourism (or lack there of) beside CWS . What does Omaha need to become more of a tourist destination, especially regionally compared to say KC. Do we need an amusement park and more chain restaurants, or can we find something special that only we have?
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TitosBuritoBarn
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by TitosBuritoBarn »

An amusement park and chain restaurants will only attract people from small towns within a couple hours driving and would make us about as exciting as Branson, MO. Omaha needs something uniquely its own.
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Brad
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Brad »

We really have a lot to offer already.

-World Class Zoo
-World Class Art Museums
-Air and Space Museum
-History/Western Heritage museum
-two railroad museums
-Top notch restaurants
-First Class sports venues
-Venues for concerts of all sizes
-Two major universities
-plenty of outdoor activities

An amusement park would be awesome, but not necessarily needed. We don't need any more chain restaurants, we really have GREAT LOCAL restaurants and should really push people towards the local places and keep them out of the chains.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Garrett »

buildomaha wrote:Just wondering what opinions are about our great city and its tourism (or lack there of) beside CWS . What does Omaha need to become more of a tourist destination, especially regionally compared to say KC. Do we need an amusement park and more chain restaurants, or can we find something special that only we have?
So I can already tell that you too will be interested in majoring in Urban Planning in about 4-5 years. ;) Cities certainly don't thrive on chain restaurants, or even necessarily amusement parks. Omaha already has a lot of great tourist draws, like the Zoo. What Omaha really needs to draw tourists is to be a great city for its residents. Walkability, good nightlife, unique and interesting attractions, stuff like that. Omaha is no Orlando or LA. It shouldn't even try to be Kansas City. Omaha needs to be Omaha in order for it to thrive.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by bigredmed »

Garrett wrote:
buildomaha wrote:Just wondering what opinions are about our great city and its tourism (or lack there of) beside CWS . What does Omaha need to become more of a tourist destination, especially regionally compared to say KC. Do we need an amusement park and more chain restaurants, or can we find something special that only we have?
So I can already tell that you too will be interested in majoring in Urban Planning in about 4-5 years. ;) Cities certainly don't thrive on chain restaurants, or even necessarily amusement parks. Omaha already has a lot of great tourist draws, like the Zoo. What Omaha really needs to draw tourists is to be a great city for its residents. Walkability, good nightlife, unique and interesting attractions, stuff like that. Omaha is no Orlando or LA. It shouldn't even try to be Kansas City. Omaha needs to be Omaha in order for it to thrive.
Omaha thrives by being organic to what it is. A city for people who want to live their lives, raise their kids, and leave other people alone. While the urban planner types get sexually excited over big projects, these have played out badly for other cities. No city hosting the Olympics has broke even, much less made a profit in the last 50 years. No city that has caved to the NFL has come out ahead. Ask StL how they feel about their Ram Bowl. We are better being a place where people here can live their lives, recreate with their families, and get to work easily and on time. Boring urban planning tasks, but they are important.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by TitosBuritoBarn »

bigredmed wrote:Omaha thrives by being organic to what it is. A city for people who want to live their lives, raise their kids, and leave other people alone. While the urban planner types get sexually excited over big projects, these have played out badly for other cities. No city hosting the Olympics has broke even, much less made a profit in the last 50 years. No city that has caved to the NFL has come out ahead. Ask StL how they feel about their Ram Bowl. We are better being a place where people here can live their lives, recreate with their families, and get to work easily and on time. Boring urban planning tasks, but they are important.
Creating a place where people can raise their families, get to work on time, and live their lives is a priority of (I would assume) all cities. While it may seem otherwise, Mayor Emanuel here in Chicago is not sitting in his office thinking "screw families, lets get another NFL team." The city's biggest priorities right now are reducing crime, creating more efficient transportation networks, improving the school systems, and increasing economic development. Or in other words, creating a safe environment for families where parents and children can receive a solid education, have a good paying job, and be able to get to work and run errands regardless of what their preferred mode is. But if you don't inject some level of excitement or prestige into that, you don't create a city with a bright future. People aren't robots. Bright eyed, bushy tailed youth aren't going to stick around in a place where everything is blah and nothing is special. Omaha learned this in the '70s and '80s with significant brain drain. And especially now, the "Millennial" population is more about having experiences than owning things and it's a lifestyle type they're holding onto and evolving as they create families. It doesn't mean that a city needs to implement large, costly projects to be special and attract talent. Austin is killing it in the cool factor right now without any pro-teams, Olympic-esque events, or mega developments. It's been a mostly grassroots effort and that's how I'd like see Omaha grow as well. Forget the NFL, the Olympics, and mega-malls, arts and culture are in now and for the foreseeable future, they help give a city a positive identity, and they're not something corporate America can just hand us.

By the way, the LA Olympics in 1984 turned a profit.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by iamjacobm »

My thought is that a lot of tourism is actually driven by the city itself and the every day neighborhoods that people visit, but maybe that is just more they way I like to travel. When I visit Dallas I like to go to Deep Ellum or Uptown or Klyde Warren Park or Greenville, not Six Flags. When I go to KC I like going to Crossroads and Westport and the Plaza more than Worlds of Fun or even P&L, although I do frequent the Royals and Chiefs. Austin doesn't have any traditional touristy areas really they just have fantastic districts and neighborhoods that are fun to explore.

If Omaha areas like Benson and Blackstone and Old Market keep improving eventually the word will get out that there are cool things to do in Omaha and it will get people to make extended weekend trips to the city. As was mentioned between the zoo and solid museums we have some good tourism anchors, but what really will draw people is the city itself having interesting areas and a unique vibe. IMO.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

More public art around the city would be nice. I'm talking cool stuff...something more hip than bronze buffalo and covered wagons trains. I mean, the bronze art work is nice, but something that appeals to younger folks might be nice. Also, when it comes to Omaha's different neighborhoods, it would be cool to add some cool signage over the streets to identify the neighborhood. If you visit the different neighborhoods in San Diego, they all have a big neon signs over the street. I visited Omaha for years and lived here several more years before I even knew some of the neighborhood names, besides the old market.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by RockHarbor »

One thing I'm noticing cities doing is putting their city name in large, blocky letters standing tall off the ground for people to stand by, and take their picture by (even standing in groups, posing around the letters). I've seen this in Cancun, Budapest, and another city so far (maybe Barcelona, or somewhere). It really looks neat, and I think it is smart, and a good move. It displays the city name in touristy shots that people post on Facebook, ect.
I can get pushed out because I'm "too much" for some. Then, an observer of me comes suddenly swooping in to "fill my shoes." People are always more accepting of the new one, because their feathers aren't truly ruffled by them. (Yawn) I can count on it every time.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Omababe »

RockHarbor wrote:One thing I'm noticing cities doing is putting their city name in large, blocky letters standing tall off the ground for people to stand by, and take their picture by (even standing in groups, posing around the letters).
So? What ever happened to all of those "O-Bang" sculptures that were scattered about the city a while back? I have not seen one for years.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by bigredmed »

Recognition and development of the entertainment areas that exist west of 72nd street (120th street from Center to Blondo has a lot of bars and restaurants and could handle more stuff. 114th and Dodge keeps trying to get off the ground and with an organizational nudge, could do so.

Lots of people come to visit family and then have to drive all the way to downtown. They want to have a good time, but they also have to drive home. Places that are a few miles away are more accessible and would offer some tourism return.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Omaha_corn_burner »

iamjacobm wrote:If Omaha areas like Benson and Blackstone and Old Market keep improving eventually the word will get out that there are cool things to do in Omaha and it will get people to make extended weekend trips to the city.
I like this idea, but not sure if it would have a big tourism impact though. I often do day trips to KC and Des Moines, but rarely stay overnight because the hotels are too expensive. So I spend a whopping $40.

Maybe instead of us always going to visit family and friends in other cities, we should all invite them to come to Omaha for a weekend :D

To the OP, what does Omaha need? We need stuff for tourists to do and see. Sure we have some museums, restaurants, the zoo and some sporting events, but people don't really think of Omaha like that (except for maybe the zoo). When somebody in Georgia or Oregon says "Omaha?", we need the person they're talking to to say, "Yeah Omaha, you know they have that _______ there that's always a great time". Omaha is a good place to live, but I don't think we really have much general tourism draw for the average Joe.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by RockHarbor »

Omababe wrote:
RockHarbor wrote:One thing I'm noticing cities doing is putting their city name in large, blocky letters standing tall off the ground for people to stand by, and take their picture by (even standing in groups, posing around the letters).
So? What ever happened to all of those "O-Bang" sculptures that were scattered about the city a while back? I have not seen one for years.
I just saw this...

I'm not sure. I think I know what you are talking about. The Big 'O' -- right? Maybe people just got tired of that marketing gimmick, and they removed them all? Not sure...

I agree that Omaha isn't a huge center for tourism (of course), but for our size, I feel we do pretty good... What city, around our size, in the Midwest, is a big tourism draw? We're probably one of the top busiest ones (within cities in our league) with the best zoo in the country and the College World Series, and maybe the Old Market...

One city that had a bigger tourism draw than I ever expected was San Antonio. Yes, I always knew somewhat w/ the River Walk & Sea World it had major tourism draw. But, when I was there, it almost felt like I was in Florida, or something. There was souvenir shop after souvenir shop, seemingly millions of "San Antonio" t-shirts, postcards, shot glasses, playing cards, key rings -- you name it. More than I expected... That's when you know you're in a true "tourism capitol": All those souvenir shops w/ all that typical merchandise/stuff.
I can get pushed out because I'm "too much" for some. Then, an observer of me comes suddenly swooping in to "fill my shoes." People are always more accepting of the new one, because their feathers aren't truly ruffled by them. (Yawn) I can count on it every time.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Omababe »

RockHarbor wrote:
Omababe wrote:So? What ever happened to all of those "O-Bang" sculptures that were scattered about the city a while back? I have not seen one for years.
I just saw this...

I'm not sure. I think I know what you are talking about. The Big 'O' -- right? Maybe people just got tired of that marketing gimmick, and they removed them all? Not sure...
These things (below). I didn't realize they are almost 10 years old. I thought they were more current.

Image
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Taco »

The new proposed plan of "Midtown 2050" is almost exactly perfect in what I'd say Omaha "needs" for both QOL and tourism.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by buildomaha »

Taco wrote:The new proposed plan of "Midtown 2050" is almost exactly perfect in what I'd say Omaha "needs" for both QOL and tourism.
Agreed. Also adds on to the "medical tourism" aspect that the med center brings here.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Omaha Cowboy »

buildomaha wrote:
Taco wrote:The new proposed plan of "Midtown 2050" is almost exactly perfect in what I'd say Omaha "needs" for both QOL and tourism.
Agreed. Also adds on to the "medical tourism" aspect that the med center brings here.
I agree with both of you :thumb: ..

As it relates to the O! Campaign from the chamber.. I believe that was started around 2006 or 2007 (I know I still have a couple O! Tshirts I'll wear around on the weekends :) ).. I think about 2014/15 when the "Omaha- We don't coast" campaign stated, that was the final nail in the coffin for O!..

Still enjoy that O! Logo though :thumb: ...

Ciao..LiO...Peace
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by skinzfan23 »

I did an internship with the O! Campaign when I was going to UNO. Molly Skold, who is now with Midtown Crossing, was the director. I know I still have some of the materials and merchandise as well.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

Have any of you been to Pioneer Village in Minden? I've read lots of news articles about it and have read the reviews on lots of travel sites. There are so many positive comments about the place. Many people comment that it is one of the best history museums that they've ever been to and many commented that there's so much to see there, it's hard to see everything in a day. Sadly, many people have also commented that the place is having financial problems. Attendance has dropped from 150,000 annually to as low as 15,000. Many commented that the buildings have lots of maintenance problems. They can't even afford to repair their roadside signs and most of them no longer exist. Most commented that Pioneer Village is a real treasure and lots of people commented that their afraid that the museum's days may be numbered.

I was thinking it would be cool if Pioneer Village's financial problems could be solved by moving to a location in Omaha instead. Maybe if Omaha built a new museum, their collection could be donated instead of them being forced to sell off their items piece by piece. Imagine how much bigger an attendance a museum in Omaha could have versus their current location. Maybe having an attraction like this could extend visitors stays by a day or two, pumping more money into the economy. I'm not sure where something like this could be built. I was thinking somewhere highly visible from the interstate. I think if the Conagra campus wasn't there, it would be cool to have a big history museum there with some connection between the river and the old market. It could really increase hotel occupancy and pedestrian traffic downtown. If done right, this could be a world class attraction.... sort of a Smithsonian type museum.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by GRANDPASMUCKER »

OmahaOmaha wrote:Have any of you been to Pioneer Village in Minden? I've read lots of news articles about it and have read the reviews on lots of travel sites. There are so many positive comments about the place. Many people comment that it is one of the best history museums that they've ever been to and many commented that there's so much to see there, it's hard to see everything in a day. Sadly, many people have also commented that the place is having financial problems. Attendance has dropped from 150,000 annually to as low as 15,000. Many commented that the buildings have lots of maintenance problems. They can't even afford to repair their roadside signs and most of them no longer exist. Most commented that Pioneer Village is a real treasure and lots of people commented that their afraid that the museum's days may be numbered.

I was thinking it would be cool if Pioneer Village's financial problems could be solved by moving to a location in Omaha instead. Maybe if Omaha built a new museum, their collection could be donated instead of them being forced to sell off their items piece by piece. Imagine how much bigger an attendance a museum in Omaha could have versus their current location. Maybe having an attraction like this could extend visitors stays by a day or two, pumping more money into the economy. I'm not sure where something like this could be built. I was thinking somewhere highly visible from the interstate. I think if the Conagra campus wasn't there, it would be cool to have a big history museum there with some connection between the river and the old market. It could really increase hotel occupancy and pedestrian traffic downtown. If done right, this could be a world class attraction.... sort of a Smithsonian type museum.

I think the people of Minden love that place and have no intentions of letting it go. I'm pretty sure they have an endowment built up that will cover the bills for years. I been there many times.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by daveoma »

GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:
OmahaOmaha wrote:Have any of you been to Pioneer Village in Minden? I've read lots of news articles about it and have read the reviews on lots of travel sites. There are so many positive comments about the place. Many people comment that it is one of the best history museums that they've ever been to and many commented that there's so much to see there, it's hard to see everything in a day. Sadly, many people have also commented that the place is having financial problems. Attendance has dropped from 150,000 annually to as low as 15,000. Many commented that the buildings have lots of maintenance problems. They can't even afford to repair their roadside signs and most of them no longer exist. Most commented that Pioneer Village is a real treasure and lots of people commented that their afraid that the museum's days may be numbered.

I was thinking it would be cool if Pioneer Village's financial problems could be solved by moving to a location in Omaha instead. Maybe if Omaha built a new museum, their collection could be donated instead of them being forced to sell off their items piece by piece. Imagine how much bigger an attendance a museum in Omaha could have versus their current location. Maybe having an attraction like this could extend visitors stays by a day or two, pumping more money into the economy. I'm not sure where something like this could be built. I was thinking somewhere highly visible from the interstate. I think if the Conagra campus wasn't there, it would be cool to have a big history museum there with some connection between the river and the old market. It could really increase hotel occupancy and pedestrian traffic downtown. If done right, this could be a world class attraction.... sort of a Smithsonian type museum.

I think the people of Minden love that place and have no intentions of letting it go. I'm pretty sure they have an endowment built up that will cover the bills for years. I been there many times.
When I was there the place had a huge amount of kitsch. I think something like this would be perfect on the far outskirts of the metro area. For example near Mahoney state park or Ashland.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by BC johns »

I agree, this would be a great addition out by Nebraska Crossing or Mahoney to add another reason for people to stop.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by bigredmed »

BC johns wrote:I agree, this would be a great addition out by Nebraska Crossing or Mahoney to add another reason for people to stop.
Leave it in Minden.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:
OmahaOmaha wrote:Have any of you been to Pioneer Village in Minden? I've read lots of news articles about it and have read the reviews on lots of travel sites. There are so many positive comments about the place. Many people comment that it is one of the best history museums that they've ever been to and many commented that there's so much to see there, it's hard to see everything in a day. Sadly, many people have also commented that the place is having financial problems. Attendance has dropped from 150,000 annually to as low as 15,000. Many commented that the buildings have lots of maintenance problems. They can't even afford to repair their roadside signs and most of them no longer exist. Most commented that Pioneer Village is a real treasure and lots of people commented that their afraid that the museum's days may be numbered.

I was thinking it would be cool if Pioneer Village's financial problems could be solved by moving to a location in Omaha instead. Maybe if Omaha built a new museum, their collection could be donated instead of them being forced to sell off their items piece by piece. Imagine how much bigger an attendance a museum in Omaha could have versus their current location. Maybe having an attraction like this could extend visitors stays by a day or two, pumping more money into the economy. I'm not sure where something like this could be built. I was thinking somewhere highly visible from the interstate. I think if the Conagra campus wasn't there, it would be cool to have a big history museum there with some connection between the river and the old market. It could really increase hotel occupancy and pedestrian traffic downtown. If done right, this could be a world class attraction.... sort of a Smithsonian type museum.

I think the people of Minden love that place and have no intentions of letting it go. I'm pretty sure they have an endowment built up that will cover the bills for years. I been there many times.
Here's an interesting article from the OMH that I found about Pioneer Village. The place really needs some financial help and I think they would stand a better chance of getting that kind of help if it was located in Omaha or even Lincoln instead of in a small town in the middle of nowhere. I'm sure the poeple of Minden love the place, but if they can't come up with a way to support it and keep it from getting even more run down, the place is going to close eventually.

http://www.omaha.com/news/time-takes-to ... 9ac4c.html
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

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For the record  NEBUGEATER does not equal BUGEATER    !!!!!!!
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

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Come on ........If you are going to waste your time googling up links to 3 year old dead court cases, why not take the time to see how the case turned out. Unless the outcome of that case does not support your opinion so you are purposely leaving it out. I think thats what they call nowadays Alternative News!

By the way Pioneer Village won the case.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

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GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:Come on ........If you are going to waste your time googling up links to 3 year old dead court cases, why not take the time to see how the case turned out. Unless the outcome of that case does not support your opinion so you are purposely leaving it out. I think thats what they call nowadays Alternative News!

By the way Pioneer Village won the case.

Do a little searching yourself and you will find that Pioneer Village does NOT have an endowment counter to what you say. It has been covered in the media in the last 12 months. Happy hunting.
For the record  NEBUGEATER does not equal BUGEATER    !!!!!!!
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

nebugeater wrote:
GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:Come on ........If you are going to waste your time googling up links to 3 year old dead court cases, why not take the time to see how the case turned out. Unless the outcome of that case does not support your opinion so you are purposely leaving it out. I think thats what they call nowadays Alternative News!

By the way Pioneer Village won the case.

Do a little searching yourself and you will find that Pioneer Village does NOT have an endowment counter to what you say. It has been covered in the media in the last 12 months. Happy hunting.
Here....this article shows there is NOT an endowment.

http://www.kearneyhub.com/news/local/mi ... aff17.html
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by nebugeater »

OmahaOmaha wrote:
nebugeater wrote:
GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:Come on ........If you are going to waste your time googling up links to 3 year old dead court cases, why not take the time to see how the case turned out. Unless the outcome of that case does not support your opinion so you are purposely leaving it out. I think thats what they call nowadays Alternative News!

By the way Pioneer Village won the case.

Do a little searching yourself and you will find that Pioneer Village does NOT have an endowment counter to what you say. It has been covered in the media in the last 12 months. Happy hunting.
Here....this article shows there is NOT an endowment.

http://www.kearneyhub.com/news/local/mi ... aff17.html

I found it too after being sure I had head that recently. By posting it you made it to easy on Smucker though!!!
For the record  NEBUGEATER does not equal BUGEATER    !!!!!!!
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by bigredmed »

Ran as a business. They have an extensive old car collection that could bring in some cash. It just isn't that compelling. If I am going to stop in Minden, it will be for the Christmas lights (they still do it best.)

Getting this back on track, a museum like this is not what we need. We need stuff to do for a couple of hours. We are an event city. The people who come to watch their kid do something have a lot of down time between events. Lets think of things to do in Omaha for 2-4 hours.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by GRANDPASMUCKER »

nebugeater wrote:
OmahaOmaha wrote:
nebugeater wrote:
GRANDPASMUCKER wrote:Come on ........If you are going to waste your time googling up links to 3 year old dead court cases, why not take the time to see how the case turned out. Unless the outcome of that case does not support your opinion so you are purposely leaving it out. I think thats what they call nowadays Alternative News!

By the way Pioneer Village won the case.

Do a little searching yourself and you will find that Pioneer Village does NOT have an endowment counter to what you say. It has been covered in the media in the last 12 months. Happy hunting.
Here....this article shows there is NOT an endowment.

http://www.kearneyhub.com/news/local/mi ... aff17.html

I found it too after being sure I had head that recently. By posting it you made it to easy on Smucker though!!!
I dont care if you had head recently or not. Too much information. :lol:
Last edited by GRANDPASMUCKER on Wed Feb 08, 2017 10:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

bigredmed wrote:Ran as a business. They have an extensive old car collection that could bring in some cash. It just isn't that compelling. If I am going to stop in Minden, it will be for the Christmas lights (they still do it best.)

Getting this back on track, a museum like this is not what we need. We need stuff to do for a couple of hours. We are an event city. The people who come to watch their kid do something have a lot of down time between events. Lets think of things to do in Omaha for 2-4 hours.

Seriously, people can't find things to do in Omaha for 2-4 hours? How about go to the mall, play some miniature golf, go bowling, play games or laser tag at an entertainment center, explore the parks, go antique shopping, go check out some model homes, go drive by Warren Buffets house, go out to eat, hang out at the hotel pool, go see a movie, walk around the old market, check out Nebraska Furniture Mart....I could go on and on.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by OmahaOmaha »

I think Omaha needs a new development that caters to tourists witha mix of shops, some good places to eat, and some fun activities..... How about a Margaritaville, a Paula Deen's Kitchen, Mello Mushroom, Dicks Last Resort, Johnny Rockets, Planet Hollywood, Hard Rock Cafe, an ice cream shop, a sweet shop, fudge store, jerky store, hot sauce store, t-shirt store, a few souvenir shops with all kinds of Omaha merchandise, a Christmas store, magic store, specialty toy store, some sort of zip line adventure course, a glow in the dark miniature golf business, a 7D dark ride, mirror maze, gourmet popcorn shop, maybe a couple amusement rides (bumper cars, merry-go-round, small kids ridesl, a shooting range, an old time photo place, some kind of Ripley's attraction, and some sort of centralized attraction like a lake with some fountains that are set to music or just a lake with paddle boats, maybe have a couple family friendly hotels part of the development.
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TitosBuritoBarn
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by TitosBuritoBarn »

OmahaOmaha wrote:I think Omaha needs a new development that caters to tourists witha mix of shops, some good places to eat, and some fun activities..... How about a Margaritaville, a Paula Deen's Kitchen, Mello Mushroom, Dicks Last Resort, Johnny Rockets, Planet Hollywood, Hard Rock Cafe, an ice cream shop, a sweet shop, fudge store, jerky store, hot sauce store, t-shirt store, a few souvenir shops with all kinds of Omaha merchandise, a Christmas store, magic store, specialty toy store, some sort of zip line adventure course, a glow in the dark miniature golf business, a 7D dark ride, mirror maze, gourmet popcorn shop, maybe a couple amusement rides (bumper cars, merry-go-round, small kids ridesl, a shooting range, an old time photo place, some kind of Ripley's attraction, and some sort of centralized attraction like a lake with some fountains that are set to music or just a lake with paddle boats, maybe have a couple family friendly hotels part of the development.
No.
"Video game violence is not a new problem. Who could forget in the wake of SimCity how children everywhere took up urban planning." - Stephen Colbert
buildomaha
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by buildomaha »

TitosBuritoBarn wrote:
OmahaOmaha wrote:I think Omaha needs a new development that caters to tourists witha mix of shops, some good places to eat, and some fun activities..... How about a Margaritaville, a Paula Deen's Kitchen, Mello Mushroom, Dicks Last Resort, Johnny Rockets, Planet Hollywood, Hard Rock Cafe, an ice cream shop, a sweet shop, fudge store, jerky store, hot sauce store, t-shirt store, a few souvenir shops with all kinds of Omaha merchandise, a Christmas store, magic store, specialty toy store, some sort of zip line adventure course, a glow in the dark miniature golf business, a 7D dark ride, mirror maze, gourmet popcorn shop, maybe a couple amusement rides (bumper cars, merry-go-round, small kids ridesl, a shooting range, an old time photo place, some kind of Ripley's attraction, and some sort of centralized attraction like a lake with some fountains that are set to music or just a lake with paddle boats, maybe have a couple family friendly hotels part of the development.
No.
Agreed.
#gohawks
bigredmed
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by bigredmed »

OmahaOmaha wrote:
bigredmed wrote:Ran as a business. They have an extensive old car collection that could bring in some cash. It just isn't that compelling. If I am going to stop in Minden, it will be for the Christmas lights (they still do it best.)

Getting this back on track, a museum like this is not what we need. We need stuff to do for a couple of hours. We are an event city. The people who come to watch their kid do something have a lot of down time between events. Lets think of things to do in Omaha for 2-4 hours.

Seriously, people can't find things to do in Omaha for 2-4 hours? How about go to the mall, play some miniature golf, go bowling, play games or laser tag at an entertainment center, explore the parks, go antique shopping, go check out some model homes, go drive by Warren Buffets house, go out to eat, hang out at the hotel pool, go see a movie, walk around the old market, check out Nebraska Furniture Mart....I could go on and on.
We go to other cities that have Gray line tours and places like Montreal's "InTourist" office that is located downtown next to one of their more famous attractions. They publish the driving guide to that office on their tourist info. Once there, the guides can point you in any number of directions as well as helping you make reservations for meals or other things. By having these, these activities you mention become more viable because you can find out easily where they are, what they cost, if they're open, and whether a local would go there. We could use that.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by lisanstan »

The O! is still at the base of the pedestrian bridge over Dodge at Memorial Park. It was wrapped in rebar and rope and the rope is slowly disintegrating.
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Coyote
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Coyote »

'Get back to 2019 numbers': Visit Omaha, tourism industry hoping for bounce back in 2022



'Get back to 2019 numbers': Visit Omaha, tourism industry hoping for bounce back in 2022
riceweb
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by riceweb »

The Omaha Zoo IMO is on the cusp of being a major tourist attraction. I don't think it would be a stretch to think they could eventually attract 3 or 4 million visitors annually. It could be not only the most visited zoo in the country, it could rival the attendance at major theme parks like SeaWorld, Knott's Berry Farm, etc.

I think it makes sense to build on that ecosystem and create a park district with hotels and additional amenities. Specifically, I think massive expansion of the Lauritzen Gardens into a sort of EPCOT style park, with a lid over I-80 to connect the two parks, would be appropriate. I would even hope we could merge the Lauritzen and Omaha Zoo management to streamline the guest experience. I'd also build a pedestrian/trolley bridge connecting the Lauritzen Gardens and the casinos in Council Bluffs along the riverfront.

I think we could truly turn the zoo area into a major tourism draw. It really feels like it's close already, and with a bit of additional investment, we could absolutely have parks in the city that each draw 4m+ visitors annually.
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Re: What does Omaha need? (Tourism)

Post by Athomsfere »

riceweb wrote: Tue Mar 29, 2022 9:12 am I think we could truly turn the zoo area into a major tourism draw. It really feels like it's close already, and with a bit of additional investment, we could absolutely have parks in the city that each draw 4m+ visitors annually.
That would be something!

I think the 10th street market would have really helped Omaha from a tourist perspective too. Seattle has Pike's Place, KC has the City Market.

Something that benefits downtown in general, but also brings in tourists like that would fit Omaha so perfectly.
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